GAO finds US Secret Service has not updated protection policies since 1991

September 4, 2026 at 02:30 AM2 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office found the Secret Service has not updated its protection protocols for the president and traveling officials since 1991. The report examined 83 incidents between 2015 and 2025 that disrupted normal protective operations, updating policies after only 25 of them. The findings emerged amid ongoing congressional inquiries into the agency's handling of assassination attempts against Donald Trump and the use of Air Force One as a decoy.

Key Facts

The GAO report states the Secret Service has not changed its protection protocols for the U.S. president and officials traveling abroad since 1991.
The report examined 83 incidents from 2015 to 2025 that disrupted normal protective operations; policies were updated after only 25 of them.
The Secret Service also failed to follow its own policy requiring new procedures to be reviewed within four years of publication.
Last week the GAO placed the agency's spokesperson and two other officials on administrative leave as part of a misconduct investigation.

GAO Report Findings

The Government Accountability Office found that the Secret Service has not updated its protection protocols for the U.S. president and officials traveling abroad since 1991. The report examined 83 incidents between 2015 and 2025 that disrupted normal protective operations. Policies were updated after only 25 of those incidents. The report states that the Secret Service often did not update protection policies after security incidents and does not require personnel to document reasons for maintaining the status quo. The agency also failed to implement its own policy requiring new procedures to be reviewed within four years of publication.

Congressional Scrutiny

The findings emerged amid ongoing congressional investigations into the Secret Service's handling of assassination attempts against Donald Trump. Lawmakers are also examining the use of Air Force One as a decoy against potential threats. The issue gained attention after Trump was forced to change planes for security reasons while returning from a NATO summit in Turkey. Last week the GAO placed the agency's spokesperson and two other officials on administrative leave as part of a misconduct investigation.